Overview
Industrial gases firm's Q4 revenue beat analyst expectations
Adjusted EPS for Q4 beat analyst expectations
Company returned $2.1 bln to shareholders through dividends and stock repurchases
Outlook
Linde expects Q1 2026 adjusted EPS of $4.20 to $4.30
Linde forecasts full-year 2026 adjusted EPS of $17.40 to $17.90
Company plans $5.0 bln to $5.5 bln in 2026 capital expenditures
Result Drivers
PRICE AND VOLUME GROWTH - Linde's Q4 sales increased 6% YoY, driven by 2% price attainment and 1% volume growth from project startups
PRODUCTIVITY INITIATIVES - Adjusted operating profit rose 4% due to productivity initiatives across all segments
REGIONAL PERFORMANCE - Americas sales rose 8% driven by higher pricing and volumes, while EMEA saw a decline in underlying sales due to lower volumes
Key Details
Metric | Beat/Miss | Actual | Consensus Estimate |
Q4 Revenue | Beat | $8.80 bln | $8.64 bln (15 Analysts) |
Q4 Adjusted EPS | Beat | $4.20 | $4.18 (18 Analysts) |
Q4 EPS | $3.26 | ||
Q4 Adjusted EBIT | Beat | $2.60 bln | $2.56 bln (14 Analysts) |
Q4 EBIT | $2 bln |
Analyst Coverage
The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 23 "strong buy" or "buy", 3 "hold" and 1 "sell" or "strong sell"
The average consensus recommendation for the commodity chemicals peer group is "buy"
Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Linde PLC is $500.50, about 5.7% above its February 4 closing price of $473.33
The stock recently traded at 27 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 24 three months ago
Press Release: ID:nEQ8C6V0Ta
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(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)